




LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 


Chap. VZ-'J Copyright No. 
Shelf Ay 


UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 













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“ THE TWO CHILDREN WITH LITTLE LOUIE WERE TLAYING IN THE I AUNDRY 


MABEL'S MISHAP 


BY 


Amy E. Blanchard 


Author of “Kittyboy’s Christmas,” “Taking a Stand,” 
“ A Dear Little Girl,” etc. 



Philadelphia 

George w. Jacobs & Co. 
103-105 So. Fifteenth Street 

1 


bf 


Library of Concn-ess 

Two Copies Received 

NOV 22 1900 

i Copyright entry 

JvWv/v W<uv, 

no XU.M'WS 

SECOND COPY 

Delivered to 

ORDER DIVISION 

NOV 24 lyuu 


Pz 7 


Copyright, 1900 By 
GEORGE W. JACOBS & CO. 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER I 7 

CHAPTER II . . 23 

CHAPTER III 37 

CHAPTER IV 52 

CHAPTER V 66 

CHAPTER VI 82 

CHAPTER VII 98 



i 














LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 

“THE TWO CHILDREN, WITH LITTLE LOUIE, WERE 
PLAYING IN THE LAUNDRY.” 

“ O, HAROLD, HERE IT IS ! ” 

“ SHE OCCUPIED HERSELF WITH TRYING TO PLAY 
MARBLES.” 










































































CHAPTER I 


T T was raining dismally. Mabel, leaning 
1 her arms on the broad window-sill, 
watched the drops trickling down the 
panes. Before her was an array of paper 
dolls in gay tissue dresses. They sat 
perched upon pasteboard chairs in front 
of a circle of queer creatures with flat 
heads, and no feet ; hand in hand these 
stood, rather flimsy in appearance. 
Mabel had cut them all in one from a bit 
of newspaper. 

Presently she gave the whole company 
a sweep off on the floor. 

“I’m tired of you,” she said. “ And 
it’s raining, and I don’t know what to do. 
I wish I were twins, so I could have some 
*me to play with.” 


8 


Mabel's Mishap 

“ Why, Mabel,” said her mother, “sup- 
pose I had two discontented little Mabels 
to be fretting around on a rainy day, what 
should I do ? ” 

“You wouldn’t have to have two 
Mabels,” returned the little girl, “ you 
could call one something else : Maude, 
or — oh, mamma, you could call one May 
and one Belle. I think I’d like to be 
May, myself. That’s what I’ll do next 
time I play by myself : I’ll pretend I 
have a twin sister named Belle.” 

“ Suppose you pick up that company 
of people, lying there by the window, 
now, and play with your twin awhile.” 

Mabel looked up mischievously. “ I 
think I’ll let Belle pick them up,” she 
said. 

“ Well, let me see her do it. There is 
a looking glass in which I can watch 
her.” 


9 


Mabel's Mishap 

“ Oh, like ‘Alice in the Looking Glass 
Country’. You watch and see Belle pick 
them up.” And she set to work, glanc- 
ing over her shoulder once in a while to 
see if her mother took in the perform- 
ance. “ There ! ” she said, after a time, 
“ Belle has picked them up, but we are 
both tired of paper dolls. Mamma, there 
is a red flag hanging out by a door across 
the street ; in that house where the little 
boy lives. What is it for ? Do you sup- 
pose he has scarlet fever ? ” 

Her mother laughed. “No, there is 
an auction — a sale going on.” 

“ What for ? ” 

“ Why, I don’t know, dear. For some 
reason they are selling off their house- 
hold goods and furniture.” 

“ Oh, I wonder if the little boy likes to 
do that. Who is selling the things — his 
papa ? ” 


io Mabel's Mishap 

“ No, an auctioneer.” 

“ Does he say, ‘Going, going, gone/ like 
Uncle Lewis does when he pretends to 
sell me ? ” 

“Yes.” 

“ Can anybody go to a — a nanction ? ” 

“ Why, yes. How many questions a 
little girl can ask.” 

“Well, mamma, I think if you’ll ‘scuse 
me, I’ll go down stairs and find some- 
thing else to do.” 

“ I’ll excuse you, certainly. Don’t get 
into mischief.” 

But Mabel was out of the door and on 
her way down the steps by this time. She 
stopped at the parlor, peeped in, and then 
went over to the piano which she opened 
and began to drum softly upon it, but she 
knew her mamma did not allow this, so 
she went across the hall to the library. 
This was a favorite room, especially on a 


Mabel's Mishap u 

rainy day, and, when her father was not 
busy there, Mabel was often allowed to 
curl herself up in one of the big chairs 
with a book. To-day, however, she did 
not feel inclined to settle down and looked 
around to find something to invite her 
attention. A box of water-colors stood 
open upon the desk where her father had 
been working. He had been coloring 
some drawings to use in his class at the 
university. 

Mabel stood gazing at the colors long- 
ingly ; they did look so bright and pretty. 
She took up one of the brushes and wet 
it in the glass of water her father had been 
using ; then she dipped it in the bright- 
est vermillion in the box. 

“I wish I had something to paint,” 
she said to herself. Looking through a 
pile of newspapers, sho found nothing 
that would do, and her eyes next sought 


12 Mabel's Mishap 

the books nearest her. She opened one ; 
it was fresh and new. “ Oh, I couldn’t 
take that,” she said. “ But this old one, 
I don’t believe he cares much for this. It 
has pictures in it, but they are very queer, 
and so yellow, I’m sure the book isn’t of 
any account at all. I think it would look 
much better if I were to paint it up a lit- 
tle.” And, the action being suited to the 
word, the brush was soon making dabs 
at the colors on the box, and the figures 
in the engravings were given startling 
costumes of red, or blue, or yellow, as 
Mabel’s fancy dictated. 

She could not help feeling a little 
guilty, though all the time telling her- 
self that it was a worthless old book, 
and that her mamma often gave her 
old magazines to try her own paints 
upon. 

Yet, when she heard a step on the 


Mabel's Mishap 13 

stairs, she started guiltily, and shut the 
book with a snap, then put down her 
brush, unaware that she had upset the 
glass of water in her haste, and that it 
was running across the table and soaking 
through the book. 

She hurried out of the door leading to 
the porch. Here she could listen to the 
voice of the auctioneer, as it came to her 
ears quite distinctly from across the 
street. It had stopped raining, though 
little puddles still lay among the bricks 
of the walk. 

“ Any one can go, ” thought Mabel ; 
“ mamma said so. I should love to see 
a nauction. And that little boy, I 
wonder if he is there.” 

It was mild spring weather, and Mabel 
thought she could dispense with a hat. 
She would rather not go in the house 
again just then ; “I’ll go to the nauction,” 


14 Mabel's Mishap 

she said. “ It’s no more than going to a 
store ; mamma said so.” 

So, running across the street, she stood 
for a moment before the gate of the little 
boy’s home, then slipped in; another 
moment found her in a room full of peo- 
ple. She turned to run away, as several 
turned to look at her, but she caught 
sight of the forlorn figure of a little boy 
huddled up in one corner, hugging a 
large dog, and towards these two she 
made her way. 

The little boy looked up with a faint 
smile as Mabel approached, then made 
room for her on the box on which he was 
sitting. 

“Isn’t it funny?” whispered Mabel, 
while the auctioneer went on rapidly: 
“A dollar an’ a half an’ a half.” 

But the little boy didn’t look as if he 
thought it very funny, for he turned his 


Mabel's Mishap 15 

head away, and Mabel thought she saw 
two tears rolling down his cheeks. 

“Is your father here?” she asked. 

The little fellow shook his head, and 
just then, the articles in that room being- 
disposed of, the crowd went into the next, 
and the two children were left alone. 

“Are yon going to move?” asked 
Mabel. “I live across the street, you 
know, and I saw the red flag hanging 
out, so I just came over.” 

The boy nodded. 

“I’m Mabel Ford. My sister told me 
your name; it’s Harold, isn’t it? What 
a dear dog that is. What’s his name?” 
Mabel was not to be daunted by Harold’s 
silence. 

“Don.” This time he answered her. 

“I wish you were not going away. Do 
you want to?” Mabel’s questions con- 
tinued. 


1 6 Mabel's Mishap 

“No,” returned Harold, “but youknow 
father has to go with his regiment to 
Cuba, and so I have to go.” 

“Oh, are you going to Cuba? What 
will you do when they are fighting? 
When are you going? ” 

“I don’t know when I am going, but I 
am not going to Cuba.” 

“Oh, I should think you would be glad 
not to. Will they take all the things 
out of the house?” 

“Yes, I suppose so. I expected to go 
to my aunt’s to-day, but Drake hasn’t 
heard from her; neither have I.” 

“And your papa went and left you all 
alone? ” 

“He had to, for he had to join his 
troops, and he thought my aunt would 
be here before this.” 

Mabel thought this a dreadful state of 
affairs, and looked her sympathy. 


Mabel's Mishap 17 

“You see,” Harold went on, “these 
aren’t our things; not many of them. 
Father rented the house furnished, and 
only brought a few of our own things 
here.” 

“Oh!” That was better, Mabel 
thought, but her curiosity was still un- 
satisfied. “Where shall you go to- 
night?” 

“Oh, I’ll go home with Drake, I sup- 
pose.” 

“Who is he?” 

“The coachman. Well, not the coach- 
man, exactly. He does . all sorts of 
things, and his wife has kept house for 
us all winter.” 

“Oh, yes; but I should think it would 
be much nicer with your aunt.” 

“Perhaps it will be when I can go to 
her, but I can’t yet. You see, she is 
probably away from home, and if I started 


1 8 Mabel's Mishap 

without knowing all about it, I might 
get to her house and find no one there, 
and then what should I do in a strange 
place ?” Harold was fast growing more 
communicative. 

“ That would be dreadful,” agreed his 
companion, overcome by his lonely con- 
dition. “ I tell you what I wish you’d 
do,” she hastened to say : “ I wish you’d 
come over with me. We haven’t any 
boys at our house, and I’ve always 
wanted awfully to be a boy. You see it 
would be fine if I were, for now I’m just 
nothing. Alice is the oldest, so she’s 
some importance, and Louie is the baby, 
so she’s the pet, and I’m in the mid- 
dle where I can’t be anything, and I 
don’t have anyone to play with, for 
Alice is fourteen and Louis is only 
two.” 

“Your mother wouldn’t want me, 


Mabel's Mishap 19 

maybe,” said Harold, though his eyes 
looked wistful. 

“Oh, yes she would,” returned Mabel, 
confidently ; “I’m sure she would. She 
lets me have my school friends come, and 
sometimes they stay all night.” 

“ But I’m a boy.” 

“Well, never mind, we can’t help that. 
You can pretend you are a girl, if you 
want to, and I’ll lend you one of my 
frocks.” 

This brought the first approach to a 
laugh which Harold had shown, and he 
consented to go and hunt up Drake, and 
Mabel went with him. 

Drake, himself, was not to be found, 
but his wife was, and to her Mabel made 
known her request. 

“Well, I just wish he would go,” 
declared Mrs. Drake. “ He’s been mop- 
ing around ever since his father went 


20 Mabel's Mishap 

away, and we two old people can’t cheer 
him up like yon could. Go along, Har- 
old, if yon like, and stay as long as you 
want to.” 

So Harold followed his new friend 
across the street, and when the situation 
was explained, true enough, he was given 
a warm welcome by Mrs. Ford. An hour 
later the two children, with little Louie, 
were playing in the laundry, having 
great times, with a tub of water and some 
very primitive fishing lines. 

“ I don’t usually like babies tagging 
after me,” Mabel confided to her friend, 
fearing he might think her less like a 
boy than she had given him reason to 
suppose, “but Louie’s nurse has gone 
out,” she explained. 

“ Oh, I don’t mind her. I think she 
is a dear little girl,” Harold returned, 
and Mabel was relieved when his heart 


Mabel's Mishap 21 

seemed entirely won by Louie’s overtures 
to “ Boy,” as she called him. 

All went merrily enough till supper 
time ; then Mabel, intent only upon mak- 
ing Harold at home, brought him smil- 
ingly into the dining-room. She had for- 
gotten the affair of the book, but it came 
back to her in a very unpleasant man- 
ner, when her father, with one of his 
most severe looks, greeted her with : 
“ Mabel, was it you who was in the library 
this afternoon, meddling with my box of 
colors ? ” 

Mabel turned as red as a beet, hung, 
her head, tried to speak, and at last, fal- 
tered out : “I — I — yes, papa.” 

“ I might have expected it from a baby 
like Louie, but a girl as big as you must 
certainly have known better. You have 
ruined one of my most valuable and rare 
books,” Mr. Ford went on to say. All 


22 Mabel's Mishap 

this before Harold. Poor Mabel felt as 
though she would sink through the floor. 
She wondered what punishment would be 
meted out to her, and she looked with 
pleading eyes at her mother. 


CHAPTER II. 


u HTHIS is Harold Evans.” Mrs. Ford 
said, tactfully drawing lier hus- 
band’s attention from Mabel. “ Harold’s 
father is in the army, and has gone to 
Cuba, so we are trying to make our little 
neighbor feel less lonely.” 

“ Mr. Evans ? oh, yes,” said Mr. Ford, 

looking up ; “I know him. That’s right, 

Alice, make the boy feel at home. Come 

here, son, and sit by me.” And the 

cloud blew over, much to Mabel’s relief. 

But the hurt of her remorse and shame 

still lingered. She did like to appear 

well before her friends, and to be shown up 

as a naughty, meddlesome little girl, was 

very hard. Besides, she really was 

greatly distressed at having spoiled the 

23 


24 Mabel's Mishap 

book, for she knew how her father loved 
his library, and treasured his rare books 
and papers. 

“Papa,” she faltered, “I’m dreadfully 
sorry. I thought it was just an old book 
you didn’t care for ; and — yes, I knew it 
wasn’t right to touch it. Is it one of 
your very preciousest books ? ” 

“Yes,” replied her father; “I am 
afraid it is. See, Mabel ; not only is this 
old print marred by those dreadful glar- 
ing colors, but you upset the glass of 
water I left here, and it has soaked 
through the book and carried the stain of 
the fresh paint with it. Then, where you 
were painting the pages are stuck to- 
gether ; and, well, you can see that 
destruction has followed your meddling. 
I must forbid you coming into this room 
again until your mother or I have given 
you permission.” 


25 


Mabel's Mishap 

“Oh !” Mabel stood the picture of dis- 
tress. “I am so sorry, papa,” she re- 
peated. “ I’ll never do so again. What 
can I do to myself?” 

A little smile flickered around her fath- 
er’ s mouth. “Pm afraid nothing you could 
do would restore my book. Another copy 
would be almost impossible to find.” 

“ Where did you get this one ? ” 

“ I came across it at an auction. It 
was in a lot of books which were lumped 
together, and went very cheap.” 

“Was it an auction like that at Har- 
old’s house this afternoon ? ” 

“Yes.” 

“ How much is very cheap ? ” 

“ Oh, five dollars for the lot, I think I 
paid.” 

Mabel was very thoughtful for a few 
moments. Several plans were at work 
in her mind. Finally, seeing that her 


26 Mabel's Mishap 

father wanted to return to his work, she 
said : “ I came to tell yon how sorry I 
am, papa, and to say good-night. I think 
maybe, if you don’t kiss me I’d feel 
worse.” 

“ Do you want to feel worse ? ” 

1 ‘ I don’t want to, but I suppose it 
would do me good, and make me remem- 
ber.” 

“ Well, my small philosopher, you 
completely disarm me. I confess I was 
very angry at first, and still feel annoyed, 
but if I can help your memory by with- 
holding my usual good-night kiss, go to 
bed without it. Good-night, daughter.” 

Mabel lingered wistfully. It was very 
hard to make her up mind to go without that 
good-night kiss, and her lips quivered as 
she turned away, seeing that her father 
meant to follow out her suggestion. But 
on the spot she formed a resolution to try 


Mabel's Mishap 27 

to replace the book if ever she could. 
Five dollars ! that was a lot of money ; 
more than she ever had at once, but she 
would save up every penny. She won- 
dered if there were any hooks sold at 
Harold’s house that afternoon. She 
would ask him. 

The next morning, while the family 
were at breakfast, Drake appeared with 
rather a perturbed countenance. “ I’d 
like your advice, Mr. Ford,” he began, 
“ So long as your lady was so good as to 
invite little Harold to come over here, sir, 
I thought, perhaps you wouldn’t mind 
helping me out in getting him fixed. You 
see, sir, when the Captain went away he 
said the boy was to go to his aunt, and 
that I was to take him as soon as I heard 
from her. Now she writes, or rather a 
nurse does, and says she’s laid up to a 
hospital, sannytorum, they call it, and 


28 


Mabel's Mishap 

it’ll be weeks before she’s out again, and 
will I look after the boy till she’s well. 
She seems to think I’m some sort of kin- 
folks to him. But you see, sir, me 
and my wife has a chance to go to the 
country to a good place, and how’ll 
we take the boys, we being hired help 
like?” 

‘‘ Humph!” Mr. Ford glanced up at 
his wife. 

Mabel slipped down from her chair and 
went close to her mother. 

“ Mamma, let him come here,” she 
whispered. “ He hasn’t any mamma nor 
any sisters and brothers, nor anything. 
I’ll give up my room if Alice will let me 
sleep with her.” 

“ Mabel proposes that we invite Harold 
here.” said Mrs. Ford. “ She will give 
up her room to him, Phillip.” 

“ Well, but how about you ? It is some- 


Mabel's Mishap 29 

thing of a charge to take a boy into the 
family where there are only girls.” 

“ I’ll take the charge willingly.” 

Mr. Ford nodded with a satisfied air. 
1 It’s settled then, Drake. We’ll take care 
of the lad. Captain Evans and I are 
acquaintances, and I do not think he 
would object to the arrangement.” 

“ He’d be that thankful, sir,” said the 
old man feelingly, but he looked at 
Mabel, who at once understood. 

“ There’s the dear doggie, too. Do you 
mind him, mamma ? He is such a dar- 
ling, and Harold loves him so.” 

“Let’s have the whole combination,” 
laughed Mr. Ford, who loved animals. 
“ He’s a collie, isn’t he ? I’ve seen him 
on the street and he seemed a fine 
fellow.” 

And so it was settled that Harold 
and Don should enter the family for the 


30 


Mabel's Mishap 

time being, and Mabel proceeded, forth- 
with, to lay her plans and to get her room 
ready for this newcomer. She took her 
dolls, her specially girly books, and cer- 
tain little knicknacks into her sister’s 
room. 

“ What do boys like in their rooms ? ” 
she asked Alice. 

“ Oh, all sorts of funny things. Bows 
and arrows, and guns, and swords, and 
oars and fishing tackle and such things.” 

“ Oh ! ” Mabel opened her eyes at the 
idea of such queer taste, and she went 
out of the room wondering how she 
could supply these things. 

Then she remembered that there was 
in the garret a hammock, which had 
fallen into disuse; it was something like 
a net, she reflected, and she dragged it 
forth. After many efforts, and finally 
resorting to a chair placed on top of a 


Mabel's Mishap 31 

table, she managed to climb up high 
enough to drape the hammock in some 
sort of fashion over the door, viewing the 
result of her labors with much satisfac- 
tion. But she thought the room needed 
some further decoration, and she returned 
to the garret. After fumbling around, 
she discovered a pair of old boxing 
gloves, and a pair of foils, and at last 
found leaning against the wall, a dust- 
covered picture representing a hunting 
scene. 

“ There! ” she exclaimed, “ that is ex- 
actly what I want. I wonder if papa will 
let me have these.” 

Down stairs she trudged again, and 
reported to her sister, who good-naturedly 
went to the library, since Mabel was for- 
bidden there, and came back with her 
father’s consent to use the things for 
decoration. 


32 


Mabel's Mishap 

Mabel was repaid for all her work when 
Harold, upon being ushered into the 
room, exclaimed : “ Why this doesn’t look 
look like a girl’s room. See those foils 
and those boxing gloves. It looks like 
some of the officer’s rooms. This is great!” 

“ And where is Don going to sleep ? ” 
asked Alice. 

Harold’s countenace fell. “ He always 
sleeps at the foot of my bed,” he replied, 
fondling his dog, who looked up wistfully, 
not understanding all these changes. 

Mrs. Ford looked a little dubious. 

“ He’s very good and quiet,” said Har- 
old, eagerly. “He never makes any noise 
or gives a bit of trouble. He minds every 
word I say to him.” 

“ Well, we will let him try it for a 
night;” agreed Mrs. Ford, “and if he 
behaves well there is no reason why he 
shouldn’t do as he has been in the habit 


Mabel's Mishap 33 

of doing.” And Harold’s heart was com- 
pletely won. 

Indeed, a few days after this, Don 
proved himself entirely worthy of the 
confidence placed in him ; for Mrs. Ford, 
hearing Alice cry out: “Oh, mother, 
come quick ! ” ran to the nursery, where 
she found her eldest daughter sitting on 
the floor, one arm around little Louie, 
and the other around Don, while she 
alternately kissed Louie’s golden head 
and Don’s black one, murmuring in an 
agitated voice : “Oh, dear little sister! 
Oh, Don ! oh, Don!” 

“ Why, Alice, what in the world is 
the matter ? ” exclaimed Mrs. Ford. 

“Oh, mother, mother, that blessed dog 
has saved our darling baby’s life,” said 
Alice, looking up with tears in her eyes. 
“Maria left Louie just for a moment, 
while she went down to get her milk, and 


34 MabePs Mishap 

asked me if I would watch her till she 
came back, and when I had come in she 
had climbed up to the window.” There was 
a catch in Alice’s voice and she hugged 
the little one closer, then she went on : 
“ Louie had climbed up to the window, 
and was hanging half way out with Don 
holding tight to her dress with his teeth. 
But for him, she must fallen out and 
have been killed. Oh, good, brave dog- 
gie ! ” 

Mrs. Ford caught up her baby girl, 
and hers were not the only tears that fell 
on Don’s head. 

So, from that time forth, the good dog’s 
place was sure, and he was allowed access 
to any room in the house, many a time 
finding his way into the library, where 
Mr. Ford permitted him to remain, with- 
out so much as a word of protest. 

All this, of course, made Harold very 


35 


Mabel's Mishap 

happy and he soon felt so much at nome 
that he really dreaded the time when he 
should have to go to his aunt. Meanwhile, 
he and Mabel became the best of friends, 
for, as Mabel said, she liked boy’s play bet- 
ter than girl’s, and a bag of marbles, a top, 
or a ball, took her fancy much more than 
a doll, and the games the two children 
had in the garden were something beyond 
imagination, so exciting were they. 

“ Oh, it’s such fun to have a boy to 
play with,” Mabel would say. And the 
highest compliment she could receive 
from Harold, was: “ You did that as well 
as any boy, Mabel.” 

To be sure, it was hard, on rainy days, 
that Harold should be allowed the free- 
dom of the library from which she was 
still barred ; but Harold was very good 
about this, and delicately refrained from 
spending much time among the fascinat- 


36 Mabel's Mishap 

in g books, even though he liked nothing 
better than to curl up in one of the big 
chairs, and pore over some old chronicles 
of war or history. 

Mabel was very grateful to him for his 
consideration, although, once in a while, 
she did desert him for her school friends, 
Marie Lewis and Ethel Morris, for there 
was quite enough girl about Mabel for 
her to enjoy certain plays which Harold 
didn’t endorse because they were too 
tame. But for all this new element 
which furnished her with a playmate at 
home there was some trouble ahead for 
Mabel, all on account of that unfortunate 
book. 


CHAPTER III. 

HERE were still some weeks before 



1 the summer holidays, and Mabel, 
in consequence, was at school during the 
morning, and the day after Harold was 
happily established at her home she 
started merrily off to school, looking for- 
ward to a happy afternoon. 

At recess, Marie Lewis and Ethel 
Morris called her. “Oh, Mabel, we’ve 
the loveliest idea, and you will just love 
it. Come over here and let’s talk about 
it.” So, with lunch-baskets in hand, 
they settled themselves in a quiet corner. 

“We want to give a lawn party for the 
benefit of the Cuban orphans,” began 
Marie, “and we’ll have some little things 
to sell, and oh, Mabel, you told me the 


37 


38 


Mabel's Mishap 

other day, that yon had two dollars ; 
you’ll give that towards it, won’t you ? ” 

Mabel flushed up to the roots of her 
hair. “I don’t know,” she faltered. 

“Oh, isn’t that mean?” cried Ethel. 
“You said you knew she’d give it, 
Marie.” 

“ Maybe she has to ask her mother,” 
said Marie, trying to help Mabel out of 
her difficulty. 

“No, I but I’m saving up for some- 

thing else,” said Mabel, hesitatingly. 

“ Oh, but nothing could be better than 
this. Of course it’s nice to give to mis- 
sions and — all sorts of things, but you 
know we don’t often have a war, or any- 
thing like this, and it’s immejet,” an- 
nounced Marie with some importance. 

Mabel looked distressed. “I think, 
maybe, mamma can tell me about what 
I’d better do,” she said at last. 


MabePs Mishap 39 

“Well, just tell me this Ethel said ; 
“Is it for any charity thing that you 
want to save the money ? ” 

Mabel shook her head. 

“Then I think you’re real mean,” 
declared Ethel, with a toss of her head 
as she flounced away. “Let’s go and 
get some one else to join us, Marie. We 
thought you’d be glad that we picked 
you out the first one, Miss Mabel, but we 
don’t want any one who grudges those 
poor orphans.” 

Mabel watched them depart whisper- 
ing, and looking back at her contempt- 
uously, and felt very much inclined to 
cry, but just then the bell rang for 
school, and she went to her seat, feeling 
bitterly all the afternoon, because of the 
little scornful flouts and tosses of the 
head which Ethel gave every time she 
looked her way. 


40 


Mabel's Mishap 

Harold, with Don at his side, was wait- 
ing on the steps for her as she came 
slowly up the street. He seemed so 
very friendly that Mabel thought that 
she would pour out her grievances to 
him. 

“Well, but what are you saving up 
for?” he said, after hearing her story. 

“Why,” she hesitated, “tell me, 
Harold, if you break or spoil anything 
belonging to another person don’t you 
know you ought to try and get another?” 

“Why, yes; I suppose it isn’t just 
straight not to. I know my father always 
says that it isn’t honorable not to pay 
debts, and that is a sort of a debt. He 
made me save up and pay for a window 
I broke once, ’cause it was my fault. I 
was shying stones when I was told 
not to.” 

Mabel nodded emphatically. “That’s 


Mabel's Mishap 41 

what I thought. You see, you know 
about the book.” She spoke shyly ; it 
was a sore subject. 

“ What book?” 

“Why, don’t you know, last night at 
snpper when papa said that to me ? ” 

“ Why, I believe he did speak up sort 
of sharply, but I didn’t pay much atten- 
tion ; I was so hungry, and those hot 
biscuits looked so good.” 

Mabel gave a sigh of relief. Her 
shame was lessened, but she went on 
with her confession : “Well, you see, I 
spoiled one of papa’s most choicest books ; 
I — I — knew better, too ; I daubed it all 
up with papa’s paints, and he feels, oh, 
awfully, and I’m going to try to get 
another book like it. It is very, very 
old.” She opened her little purse, and 
unfolded a paper on which she had copied 
every word of the title page of the book. 


42 


Mabel's Mishap 

“Were there any books sold at your 
house the other day ? ” she asked. 

“Yes, I believe so.” 

“ Oh, then this might have been among 
them. I wish I had thought.” 

“ I don’t believe it was. I know pretty 
well about the books that were sold. Still, 
it might have been.” 

“ Papa got his at a nauction,” Mabel 
went on ; “he paid five dollars for a lot 
of books, and that is what I must try 
to do.” 

“ Maybe you wouldn’t have to do that. 
You might find it at that second-hand 
book store on Ninth street.” 

“I never thought of that. I wonder if 
mamma will let us go down there this 
afternoon? I’ll ask her.” 

Consent having been obtained, the two 
started forth, but only disappointment 
met them. “You’ll find it hard to get 


43 


Mabel's Mishap 

hold ol that book,” the man in the store 
told them, smiling and looking at them 
cnrionsly, as if he wondered what in the 
world they could want of such a thing. 
“Won’t some other book do?” he asked. 

Mabel shook her head, but went away 
convinced that she must keep on trying, 
and that she had no right to put her 
money to any other use until she was 
satisfied that it was impossible to get the 
book. 

She and Harold considered this their 
secret, and talked a good deal about it, 
so that Mabel had this comfort, while at 
school her two friends openly scorned 
her. 

“ Of course, we’ll invite her,” Marie 
was heard to say one day, “but I don’t 
suppose she’ll come ; she’s too mean to 
spend ten cents to get in.” 

A burning blush suffused Mabel’s 


44 Mabel's Mishap 

cheeks, and she bent her head over her 
desk, feeling very much mortified, but 
she did not make an effort to change the 
girls’ opinion of her. 

“I think girls are a mean lot,” Harold 
said, indignantly, when he was told of 
this. “I’d trust a fellow more than that. 
I’d know what he was going to do with 
his money, or whether he was going to 
spend it in some selfish way, before I 
talked that way.” 

“ Maybe a boy would,” returned Mabel. 
“ Anyhow, Harold, it’s a great comfort 
to have yon here, or else I might give up, 
and take the money to the girls, after 
all. Mamma said I must do just what 
seemed to me right. 

“ Don’t you give it to them,” said 
Harold, fiercely. “You just hold out, 
no matter what they say. I’ll take you 
to the lawn party.” 


Mabel's Mishap 45 

“ Oh, Harold!” Mabel was deeply grate- 
ful for this offer. “ I think it’s lovely for 
yon to say that, but I don’t believe I shall 
want to do that. I’ll just wait till I’ve 
got the book, and then I’ll save up and 
send my money to the orphans. Mamma 
will do it for me. She can send it straight 
to the ladies who take care of the money 
and see that the orphans get some of it.” 

Harold looked at her admiringly, 
“That’s fine,” he said ; “ I don’t believe 
I’d be as modest as that. I’d like to show 
off before those girls, and just flourish 
around at the lawn party, if I had money 
to spend.” 

“I should, too,” returned Mabel, “but, 
somehow, I don’t think I ought to, after 
what I did to the book.” 

“ I tell you what,” said Harold, “ the 
thing we ought really to do, is to hunt up 
red flags, and auctions, and go for them 


46 Mabel's Mishap 

whenever we can ; there’s no telling what 
we might find.” 

To this Mabel agreed, but the chances 
were few and far between, and they began 
to think theirs an impossible quest. 

One day, to be sure it was after Mabel 
had saved up a full five dollars by dint 
of all sorts of sacrifices and helpings, the 
two entered a house where a sale was 
going on, chief among the articles to be 
sold being a choice library. There was a 
catologue of the books, and over this the 
children poured, till Harold exultantly 
exclaimed, “There it is Mabel!” And 
sure enough, the title was printed in full. 
They waited nervously till the bidding 
began. Certain books were sold singly ; 
the rest in lots ; among the first was the 
one on which Mabel had set her heart. 
When it was put up for sale, the first offer 
was two dollars, and Harold, with his 


47 


Mabel's Mishap 

heart in his mouth, cried: “Three!” 
“ Four ! ” came from another corner of 
the room. “ Five ! ’’ said Harold, with a 
quick glance at Mabel, who with very red 
cheeks, and parted lips, stood by his side. 
“Six!” the word came that shattered 
their hopes, and then the book was run 
up to fifteen dollars, the buyer passing 
quite near to the children, exclaiming to 
a friend: “It’s a bargain, Nevins ; I 
wouldn’t take fifty dollars for it.” 

Fifty dollars ! So it was a hopeless mat- 
ter after all. No wonder her father had 
been so displeased at the destruction of 
his property, thought Mabel. The two 
small figures left the place almost imme- 
diately. 

“It’s no use trying, ” began Mabel ; 
“I’m just going to give up. I never in 
the world could save up all that money ; 
fifteen dollars.” 


48 Mabel's Mishap 

“ I have five,” replied Harold ; “ I can 
lend you that much.” 

“ No, no !” Mabel refused utterly ; “ I 
haven’t any way of paying it back, and 
papa says to borrow money when you’ve 
no way of paying it is almost the same as 
stealing.” 

“But you could save up and pay it 
some day ; of course, you could.” 

“No, I might never be able to; besides, 
it might be years and years and it 
wouldn’t be right to keep you out of the 
money all of that time when you might 
want it. Oh, dear, I wish I never had 
been so careless.” 

Harold tried to cheer her by remind- 
ing her that her father had bought his 
book for five dollars, and why shouldn’t 
she come across another such bargain, 
and he said they must not give up the 
hunt for the book. “ I’ll look in the 


49 


Mabel's Mishap 

papers every day,” he said with quite the 
air of a man, “ and whenever we can we 
will go to a auction.” 

“ I thought it was a 1 nauction,’ ” said 
Mabel. 

“No, it’s ‘ auction.’” 

Mabel looked a little doubtful and 
Harold hunted up a newspaper, and, after 
some searching, triumphantly pointed 
out the word to her. 

“ Oh, all right,” admitted Mabel ; “I’ll 
say, auction, then. Somehow, though, 
this one, that we went to to-day, scared 
me ; there were so many people there, 
and they made such a noise.” 

“You needn’t mind people ; I don’t. 
I’ll always go with you, and take care of 
you, you know.” 

“There aren’t many things you are 
afraid of, are there ? 

“ Why, not many. You see, my 


50 MabePs Mishap 

father is a soldier, and I have to be 
brave. ” 

“ Oh !” this explained the situation 
fully to Mabel, and they returned to the 
subj ect of the auction. 

“Next time,” said Harold, “I’ll do all 
the bidding, and you need not come into 
the room, if you don’t want to.” 

“ Oh, but I do want to ; it’s sort of 
exciting, although I do get tired of hear- 
ing the auctioneer; but as long as it is 
the only way of getting the book, why, 
of course, we must go to every auction we 
hear of.” 

Therefore, a few days later they made 
their plans again, hopefully, to go to a 
house in Germantown, where Harold had 
discovered that an auction was to be held 
that day. 

“ Where are you two children off 
to, now?” Mrs. Ford asked. “Is it 


Mabel's Mishap 51 

the Zoo this time, or Rittenhouse 
Square? ” 

“ No, mamma,” Mabel replied, “do you 
mind if we go to Germantown ? ” 

“To Germantown ? Why, that is a long 
trip for two small bodies. Are yon sure 
you won’t get lost ?” 

“I’m sure, mamma ; Harold knows 
just how to go.” 

These secret expeditions and their 
object were known to Mrs. Ford, and she 
usually permitted them when she felt 
sure they were safe ; so, in this case, 
after some questioning, she gave her con- 
sent, and the two set forth. 


CHAPTER IV. 

FTER leaving the car, the way for 



Harold and Mabel led through a 
quiet, shady street, where old houses 
stood each side the road, and the children 
were rather inclined to think it a more 
pleasant place than where they lived. 

“The reason I like it,” said Harold, 
“is because there was a battle fought 
here ; my father told me all about it, and 
he showed me the house where the fight 
was the hardest, and there are bullets 
buried in the walls ; it is called the old 
Chew house.” 

“ Was it William Penn that fought the 
battle?” asked Mabel, with a desire to 
appear interested- 

“No-o,” returned Harold, in a tone of 

52 


53 


Mabel's Mishap 

disgust ; “ of course, it was not. It was 
General Washington. William Penn 
didn’t fight. Why, don’t you know, he 
was a Quaker? You remember how he 
loved peace, and made the treaty with 
the Indians.” 

“Oh, yes; I do remember now,” re- 
plied Mabel. “I’m awfully stupid about 
history. I never remember who did 
things. Oh, Harold ! see that old woman 
limping along there ; she looks like a 
Quaker ; but she is so wild and queer 
looking. I believe she is crazy ; I am 
afraid of her.” 

“ Sho ! There’s nothing the matter 
with her ; she is just looking for some- 
one. Hear her call : ( Bobby, Bobby.’ 

Don’t you hear her ? ” In truth, the old 
woman, hobbling along with a crutch, 
did look somewhat distracted, for her cap 
was awry, and her shawl dragged on the 


54 


MabePs Mishap 

ground. She paused, however, at sight 
of the children. 

“You didn’t see anything of a big grey 
cat, with a collar on, as you come along, 
did you ? ” she asked. 

The children shook their heads. 

“ Dear, dear ; I’m afraid he’s so scared 
that he’ll never come back. I caught 
sight of some boys setting their dog on 
him two or three hours ago, and I’ve been 
tramping about hunting for him ever 
since. I’m nearly distracted, and I can’t 
walk another step with my lame hip.” 

The children looked at each other. If 
they stopped now they would, maybe, 
miss the sale ; but Mabel spoke her 
thought. 

“I don’t care, I’m going to hunt up 
that poor, frightened kitty. Which way 
did he go?” She turned to the old 


woman. 


Mabel's Mishap 55 

“Down the lane, in that direction.’' 

“ We’ll look for him, and if we find 
him, we’ll come back and tell you. I 
don’t suppose we could catch him, for he 
wouldn’t know ns.” 

“Thank thee, child. Thee is very 
good to turn aside for an old woman,” 
was the answer Mabel received. 

Up and down the two children trudged; 
the afternoon grew shorter and shorter, 
and at last, up in a tree Mabel caught 
sight of pussy, and back they went to 
where the old woman still sat on her steps 
waiting for them. 

“We’ve found him!” cried Harold. 
“ He’s up a tree. Mabel saw him first. 
Now, what shall we do to get him down?” 

“ Thee has brought good news, and 
I’m very thankful,” said the old woman. 
“ He’s all I’ve got, and we’ve kept house 
together for fifteen years. He’s old, for 


56 Mabel's Mishap 

a cat, but is still spry ; be can’t bite 
much, but be can scratch, and I’m afraid 
be might be hurt somewhere, and couldn’t 
get home, and would die off there alone. 
Let me see, what is the best thing to be 
done. I’m afraid my lameness will pre- 
vent me from walking any further.” 

“I can climb the tree,” said Harold, 
“but how will I get him down ? ” 

“ I’ll get thee a net bag, and maybe 
thee can manage to get him into that by 
throwing it over him and drawing the 
strings ; then he’ll be safe enough, and 
so will thee, too. Thee is sure thee is not 
afraid ? ” 

a I’ll try my best to get him,” said 
Harold, sturdily. And off the children 
started to find Bobby still up in the tree. 

Harold began to climb toward him, but 
the higher he went, the higher did pussy 
go, till Mabel, in alarm, called : “You’ll 


57 


Mabel's Mishap 

fall, Harold ; the branches are getting so 
little. You’d better come down.” Harold, 
sitting astride a limb, looked down at her. 

“ What’s up, sis?” said someone from 
the road. 

Mabel turned, and saw a man sitting 
in a cart. “ A cat,” she replied. The man 
laughed, and climbed down from his seat. 

“ Your’n?” he asked. 

“No, an old lady’s up the street ; and 
we promised to try and get the cat down 
for her. It was chased by some dogs and 
boys.” 

“Pretty high up, ain’t she?” returned 
the man. “ Your brother, there ?” 

“No; at least, he’s just like my 
brother ; he lives at our house.” 

The man stood rubbing his chin, and 
looking up in the tree. 

“You had better come down, bub,” he 
called to Harold. “ That there cat’ll stay 


58 


Mabel's Mishap 

up there as long as you do. I’ll find a way 
to get her.” And Harold began, slowly, to 
descend. “You just keep an eye on my 
horse for a minute, and don’t let nobody 
run off with him, and I’ll find a way to 
get your cat,” said the man, smiling down 
at Mabel. 

He crossed the street, and entered a 
small butcher shop, coming out presently 
with a bit of meat in his hand, and a long 
pole. 

By this time, Harold had reached the 
ground, and both children were calling, 
coaxingly, “Pussy, pussy, pussy;” but 
Bobby did not move. He was away out 
on a slender limb, to which he clung 
steadfastly. 

“It’ll most take a hook and ladder 
company to bring her down,” said the 
man, “but I’ll try this before we call out 
the force.” He tied the meat on the end 


Mabel's Mishap 59 

of the pole, led his horse over so the cart 
would stand under the tree ; then he 
climbed up on the seat, and, by so doing, 
could just reach the limb with his pole. 
Slowly he moved it along till it dangled 
under the cat’s nose. This was too much 
for Bobby, and he moved toward the tid- 
bit, which the man drew slowly along 
till Bobby had reached the trunk of the 
tree in trying to reach the meat. But 
here he hesitated, and looked wildly 
around, fearing to go further. 

“ Here, sis, come take the pole,” the 
man called to Mabel, and she obeyed. 

“Yon can rest it agen the tree,” he 
said, “ and just ease it down as the cat 
follows. Yon and me has got to git out 
of the way,” he said to Harold, “ the 
crittur’s used to petticoats, and ain’t 
goin’ to trust herself among men and 
boys.” He led his cart and horse away, 


60 Mabel's Mishap 

bidding Harold to follow, and the two 
kept out of sight, till Bobby, seeing the 
coast clear of all but one little girl, be- 
gan to descend. When he was safely 
within catching distance the man rushed 
from behind the tree where he had been 
hiding, grabbed Bobby, and thrust him 
into the bag which Harold held. 

“There you are! ” said the man. “ No, 
no ! I don’t want no thanks ; I aint had 
such fun in a coon’s age. Here, take 
along this piece of meat ; he’d ought to 
have it; ’taint right to tempt critturs 
that way and then disappint ’em.” And, 
giving them a good-natured nod as he 
mounted his cart, he drove away. 

“What an awfully good, kind man,” 
exclaimed Mabel, watching him depart. 
“ I couldn’t have believed any one so 
rough, and in such coarse, dirty clothes 
could be so nice.” 


Mabel's Mishap 61 

“ He is a brick,” pronounced Harold. 
“ Come, Mabel, we must burry ; it’s get- 
ting awfully late, and I expect we shall 
miss the auction altogether.” 

“ I don’t care, as long as we saved the 
kitty. Maybe the dogs would have 
caught him, if he had tried to come down 
when we were not there. Anyhow, the 
old Quaker lady was awfully distressed 
about him.” 

“Yes, and do you know, I believe those 
fellows were just waiting around, for I 
saw two or three peep out from the corner 
of a house, and they were snickering and 
whispering ; I believe they were the very 
ones.” 

Although Bobby struggled and 
squirmed, he could not escape from the 
bag, and was safely brought home, Har- 
old not loosing his hold till he had land- 
ed his charge within doors. 


62 Mabel's Mishap 

They were greeted joyfully by the old 
lady, who led them into a neat sitting 
room. “Now, sit downhere, my dears,” she 
said. “My name is Deborah Knight, 
and I want to give thee a taste of my old- 
fashioned cinnamon-bnn. I don’t think 
there is any better made in Philadelphia 
and I never ate it anywhere else. I am 
going to take Bobby upstairs in my 
room, and give him a saucer of milk; so, 
wait here till I come back.” 

Left to themselves, the children looked 
around the room, which was cosy and 
filled with old-fashioned furniture. 
Mabel’s eyes wandered over the various 
articles on the mantel, and the tables, but 
Harold’s attention was attracted by an 
old bookcase filled with books. He tip- 
toed over to it, and began to read the 
titles. “We might find the book here,” 
said Harold ; “ See, there are some real 


Mabel's Mishap 63 

old ones here, and this is an old house ; 
the furniture is, I know, and so are those 
portraits in the queer frames.” 

The two children knelt before the 
shelves, and eagerly read each title as 
best they could, but the book they so 
desired was not among them. 

Mrs. Knight entering the room, found 
them thus occupied. “ What do you find 
there, children?” she asked. “ Does 
thee like books, Harold? I’ll show thee 
one with some pretty pictures in it. But 
here now, help thyself and thee too, 
Mabel,” and she set a plate of toothsome 
bun and two glasses of milk before them. 
“Bobby’s all right,” she told them. “No 
one knows how I felt about him. When 
one doesn’t have anyone much but a cat 
to care for, it becomes a matter of deep 
concern if anything happens to him. 
Some persons set store by old furniture 


64 


Mabel's Mishap 

and houses and books, but my cat is worth 
more to me than all such things.” 

“Mabel’s father just loves old books,” 
Harold informed her, “and we’ve been 
hunting for a very special one for him, 
but we can’t find it ; we’ve been to all the 
old book-stores in the city.” 

“Indeed, that is too bad,” returned Mrs. 
Knight. “I wish I might be able to help 
thee.” She considered the subject for a 
moment and then went on: “ Ihaveapileof 
old books up in the garret, but I fear it would 
not be much use to examine them. I was 
intending to sell them to the junk man • 
they are of no use to me, and I am get- 
ting ready to go into the country, where 
I can live secure from dogs and bad 
boys.” 

At the mention of the old books, Mabel 
became too excited to help herself to the 
tempting food before her, and began 


Mabel's Mishap 65 

breathlessly: “Those books, I wonder if 
you would let us see them before you do 
the junk man. It is a very old book 
that we have been hunting for, and you 
know, it might happen to be among those 
you have.” 

“ Of course, I’ll let thee see them, and 
welcome,” returned Mrs. Knight; “it isn’t 
quite dark yet, and the garret is a light 
one for it faces the west and gets the last 
rays of the sun. Eat thy bun, and then 
I’ll let thee look at whatever I have.” 

At this, the children hastily dispatched 
their treat, declaring nothing ever could 
be better, and then they followed Mrs. 
Knight up the queer, narrow stairs which 
led to the garret. 


CHAPTER V. 


/^VER by a little dormer window in 
the garret, they found tbe pile of 
books, and Mrs. Knigbt left them to 
make their examination by the fast wan- 
ing light of the afternoon. 

One by one, Mabel and Harold laid 
the books aside, after peeping inside 
the covers. They divided the lot, and 
each took a certain number to ex- 
amine. 

Mabel was about half way down the 
heap upon which she was at work, when, 
suddenly, she gave a little cry of joy: 
“ Oh, Harold ; here it is ! It is, it is ! 
Look ; do look ! ” 

Harold dropped the musty volume he 

had just picked up, and came over to 

66 



“ O, HAROLD, HERE IT IS ! ” 



Mabel's Mishap 67 

where Mabel was, hardly willing to be- 
lieve that she was right in making such 
an announcement. 

“Well, I’ll be switched if it isn’t!” 
he said, after looking it over carefully. 

“ Oh, do let us hurry down with it to 
Mrs. Knight ! Oh, Harold, do you sup- 
pose she will sell it to me?” Mabel said, 
eagerly. 

“Of course, I think she will,” Harold 
answered from the stairs, down which 
he was going post-haste. 

Mabel followed, holding tightly to the 
book, and they quite startled not only the 
old lady, but her cat, who was sitting in 
her lap. 

Bobby fled under the sofa, with tail 
twice its usual size, as the children burst 
into the room, crying: “We’ve found it, 
we’ve found it !” 

“Softly, my dears ; softly. You have 


68 Mabel's Mishap 

scared poor Bobby, who is so nervous 
after bis late troubles ; I think he is 
afraid his enemies are upon him again.” 

“Poor Bobby,” said Mabel, gently, 
pausing in the centre of the room. “We 
wouldn’t hurt you for the world. See, 
Mrs. Knight ; we did find the book. 
Will you sell it to me ; I have five dollars 
to buy it with ? ” 

“ Five dollars ? The whole lot wouldn’t 
bring that ! ” exclaimed Mrs. Knight. 

“Oh, but it would,” returned Mabel, 
honestly ; “for one of those books sold a 
day or two ago for fifteen.” 

“ Does thee really mean it ? Well, my 
cat is worth more than that to me ; so, 
take the book, and be welcome to it.” 

Mabel could hardly believe her ears. 
“Oh,” she exclaimed; “do yon really 
mean to give it to me ? ” 

“I would scarce tell thee to take it, 


Mabel's Mishap 


69 


unless I meant it ; and, in my opinion, it 
is very little to give. I cannot see why 
thee should consider it of any value.” 

“But,” went on honest Mabel, “we 
know it is worth a great deal, for the 
man who bought the one we saw, said he 
wouldn’t take fifty dollars for it.” 

“And I would not take a hundred dol- 
lars for my cat. Besides, I am an old 
woman, with neither kit nor kin, and 
when I die, what I have will go to charity ; 
so, if the book is of any use to thee, take 
it, child ; it is a very small thing to me 
in return for what thee has done.” 

Mabel’s radiant face expressed her 
thanks, without her words. “Now, we 
must go,” she said, after she had repeated 
her words of appreciation, again and again. 
“ Oh, see how dark it is getting. Mamma 
will be dreadfully worried, I’m afraid.” 

“Then I’ll not keep thee a moment,” 


jo Mabel's Mishap 

Mrs. Knight said. “Come again, if thee 
cares to visit an old, lame woman and 
her cat. I shall be glad to see yon both 
at any time, and if there is anything I 
can do for either of you, it will give me 
pleasure to do it.” 

They promised to come again, and 
made their farewells, then set out for the 
cars. 

“Just think,” said Mabel, as they 
turned the corner, “if we hadn’t stopped 
to help Mrs. Knight to find her cat, we 
might never have been able to get the 
book.” 

“ That’s what they call ‘bread upon the 
waters,’ ” returned Harold, sagely. 

Mabel was a little puzzled, until Harold 
explained what it meant. 

“Oh, I suppose it is about the same as 
‘one good turn deserves another,’ ” she 
decided. 


Mabel's Mishap 71 

“Dear me, how long the cars are com- 
ing, said Harold. “Your mamma will 
think we are lost, and won’t believe I am 
taking very good care of you.” 

They reached home at last, but not 
before Mrs. Ford had, indeed, begun to 
feel much worried at their long absence. 
But she did not scold, after she had heard 
their joyous voices at her door, and learned 
what had detained them. 

Mabel concluded her story with: “So, 
you see, we couldn’t help it. Was it very 
wrong to stay, mamma?” 

“Perhaps not ; although it has given 
me an anxious hour. Still, it is worth 
that much to see my little girl relieved 
of her anxiety, and to know that she 
has well earned her right to be trusted 
again. And also, that she has proven, 
beyond question, that she is honest and 
faithful. Papa will be so very glad, dear.” 


72 


Mabel's Mishap 

“May I go to him right away? Is he 
in the library ? ” Mabel asked. 

“Yes, he is there; and you may go 
right away.” 

Mabel turned, a little doubtfully, to 
where Harold had stood a moment before; 
but he had taken in the situation, and 
had left the room. “ Oh, Harold isn’t 
here,” said the little girl. “ Mamma, 
ought I to ask him to go with me to 
papa ? ” 

“Yon would rather not ? ” 

“ Don’t yon think I ought to, when he 
helped me so much about getting the 
book?” 

“Not necessarily ; and I think he has 
gone off on purpose, for I am sure he 
understands how you feel. If he comes 
back, I’ll tell him that you intended to 
ask him. Now, run along, dearie.” 

It had been many weeks since Mabel 


Mabel's Mishap 73 

had crossed the threshold of the library, 
and her father looked up in surprise, as 
he saw her at the door. 

“ Mamma said I might come,” she 
began eagerly, “and oh, papa, I have the 
hook; here it is.” 

“ The book ? What book ? ” He took 
the package mechanically, while Mabel 
stood on tip-toe with her hands tightly 
clasped, and her eyes fixed on his face. 

As Mr. Ford’s gaze rested on the old 
book with its dull covers, his surprise was 
evident. “Why, Mabel, “he exclaimed, 
“ where did you get this ? It is even an 
older edition than mine, and in quite as 
good, if not better condition than mine 
was originally. Tell me about it, little 
daughter.” And he drew her kindly to 
his knee. 

Then Mabel poured forth her tale, 
beginning with her resolve to make good, 


74 Mabel's Mishap 

if possible, the mischief she had done. 
“For you know, papa,” she concluded by 
saying, “you always have told me that 
one ought never to be in debt, and so — 
Are you pleased, papa? Do you trust 
me again ? ” 

He kissed her and drew her closer. 
“ Indeed I do, dear child,” he answered. 

“ And I may come into the library 
again ? ” 

“Just as before.” 

Mabel gave a little satisfied sigh. It 
was so good to have all restrictions taken 
away. 

“Now I must go to work again, 
daughter,” said her father. “ Thank you 
very much for getting me the book; and, 
yes, I think I shall have to give you the 
other one. Keep it on your shelves, and 
perhaps it will remind you of two or 
three things.” 


Mabel's Mishap 


75 


“What?” 

“ Can you guess ? ” 

“ One is, not to meddle with what isn’t 
mine.” 

“ Yes, that is one.” 

“ And the other — I can’t guess, 
papa.” 

“ That ‘ a wrong confessed is half re- 
dressed’, and that your father has very 
great respect for the honor and justice, 
and self-sacrifice his little daughter has 
shown.” 

Then Mabel left him, and trudged up- 
stairs feeling very happy. On her way 
down again her mother met her. “ Mrs. 
Lewis was here this afternoon,” she said, 
“and she said we must all come to the 
lawn party. She told me there seemed 
to be some coolness between Marie and 
you, but she hoped that nothing serious 
was the matter.” 


76 


Mabel's Mishap 

“Oh, mamma, do yon think Marie has 
said anything about me to her mother ?’> 

“Perhaps, but if she has, Mrs. Lewis 
does not seem to attach much importance 
to it. If mammas were to take seriously 
all the little fusses their children get into, 
I am afraid they would have a hard time 
of it.” 

Mabel stood patting the baluster softly. 
She was thinking very soberly. Pres- 
ently she looked up, “ Mamma, do you 
mind if I give the five dollars to the 
Cuban orphans ? ” she asked. 

“ I have not the slightest objection.” 

“ Won’t the girls be surprised ?” 

“ Do you want them to be ? ” 

“ Why, yes, I think so. They were 
very mean to me, to be sure, and we have 
scarcely spoken for weeks. Would you 
go to the lawn party if you were I, 
mamma ? I don’t think you know how 


Mabel's Mishap 77 

hateful they were,” and then she told her 
story. 

“ They were very unjust, I admit,” 
her mother told her, “but I think they 
will be very much ashamed of themselves 
when they see you willing to help them 
so generously. Yes, I think you and 
Alice and Harold should all go, even if 
the girls have been unkind. It will not 
be a social affair, remember, and if the 
cause is good the rest does not mat- 
ter.” 

“ But about the money, mamma ; I 
was going to ask you to send it for 
me.” 

“ Wouldn’t you rather spend it at the 
lawn party ? You might give a part of it 
to the fund, but you’ll be doing just the 
same if you buy things from the girls, 
and, besides, it will be pleasant for them 
to feel that they have such a good cus- 


78 Mabels Mishap 

tomer. What was the reason you thought 
you would not spend it there ? ” 

“ Because — because — I didn’t want to 
show off,” Mabel answered, shyly. 

Mrs. Ford put her arm around the 
child. “I think you have already sacri- 
ficed enough, dear,” she said. “ No one 
doubts that you have the right feeling. 
Never mind what the girls think, but go 
and enjoy yourself. I promised Mrs. 
Lewis that I would send a contribution 
of biscuits and salad, and several of the 
neighbors have promised me something. 
So I shall probably send you and Harold 
off foraging to-morrow ; at least, I’ll 
let you collect some of the articles for 
me.” 

“Mamma, Mrs. Knight has such beau- 
tiful flowers ; I wonder if she wouldn’t 
give us some ? She said she would 
be glad to do any thing she could 


Mabel's Mishap 79 

for us, because we helped her to get 
Bobby.” 

Mrs. Ford considered for a moment. 
“ If you want to go and ask her, I see no 
harm in it, but you’d better wait till Fri- 
day morning, so the flowers will be 
fresh, if you get any.” 

Therefore, Mrs. Knight received a 
second visit from the children, as she was 
busy making some of her famous cinna- 
mon bun, on Friday morning. Mabel 
explained their errand and met with a 
hearty response. 

“ Give you some flowers ? To be sure, I 
will, gladly; and you can have every one 
in the garden, if you want them.” 

“Oh, we couldn’t carry every one,” said 
Harold, in all seriousness. Mrs. Knight 
laughed. “Thee is literal enough for a 
Friend,” she said. “Then I will not give 
thee all my flowers, but how would thee 


8o 


Mabel's Mishap 


like a loaf of my bun ? I’ll warrant they’ll 
not have any like it at thy friend’s party, 
Mabel. But I give it to thee, and thee 
must donate it in thy name.” 

“ Oh, would that be fair ? ” asked the 
little girl. 

“Does thee think a Friend would tell 
thee to do a thing unfair ? Then if thy 
compunctions are even more tender than 
mine I will give it to thee to do with as 
thee chooses.” 

“But, can you spare it, Mrs. Knight ? ” 

u l can make more when I want it,” 
she returned. “ I always keep it on 
hand, for I am fond of it myself, thee 
sees.” 

Therefore, with their hands and arms 
laden, they returned to the city, and the 
exclamations of appreciation which met 
them when their donations were handed 
in, warmed their hearts mightily, and 


Mabel's Mishap 81 

made Mabel, at least, feel much more 
that she was a welcome guest. 

Still, Marie and Ethel had not yet 
greeted her, and she rather anxiously 
waited to find out how they would act 
when they saw her there. 


CHAPTER VI. 


/Wl ARIE LEWIS’ pretty home in West 
Philadelphia looked very bright 
and attractive on the afternoon of the 
lawn party. Mabel and Harold stood 
looking around at the tables and booths. 

“ That’s the tea-house,” said Mabel, 
indicating a gay structure at one end of 
the grounds. “ Ethel is going to help 
serve the tea, and her sister is the Rebecca 
at the Well, where the lemonade is. I 
think we’ll get some lemonade first 
thing, for I am so thirsty.” 

They sauntered over to the well, pass- 
ing the tea pagoda on their way. Just 
here Mrs. Lewis stopped them. She had 
in her hands a plate of Mrs. Knight’s 
cinnamon bun. “Come right in here, 

82 


Mabel's Mishap 83 

Mabel,” she said. “I’m taking this to the 
tea-house ; it will be so nice to serve with 
the tea. Have you seen Marie? Here 
is Ethel, too.” 

The girls looked at each other rather 
sheepishly as they saw Mabel. Mrs. 
Lewis went on: “Just think, girls, how 
Mabel has worked for us. She brought 
those lovely flowers over on the middle 
table, and besides those and this delicious 
bun, she has given three dollars, all her- 
self, to the fund.” 

“Oh!” Marie blushed up to the roots 
of her hair, and looked at Ethel. Mrs. 
Lewis passed on, leaving the four children 
standing there, rather embarrassed at 
the situation. 

Harold broke the silence by saying, 
with a little amused smile: “Come on, 
Mabel, we were going to get some lemon- 
ade, you know.” 


8 4 


Mabel's Mishap 

“Oh,” Ethel started forward, “don’t 
go away yet. I — we — you know we 
didn’t know.” 

“But we were horrid,” Marie broke in, 
“and I’m awfully ashamed of myself, 
really I am, Mabel, and I think it was 
sweet of you to come this afternoon, 
after the way we behaved. Don’t you, 
Ethel?” 

“Yes, I do,” replied Ethel, a little 
awkwardly. It was harder for her to 
yield than for Marie. “But why didn’t 
you say, in the first place, that you were 
going to give such a lot?” she asked, 
turning to Mabel. “You didn’t say 
you’d save up and give more than any 
of us.” 

Mabel looked down. She couldn’t 
explain. 

But Harold was equal to the occasion. 
“Because she thought she had a debt to 


85 


Mabel's Mishap 

pay ; to make good something that was 
spoiled, and until she knew about that 
she thought she oughtn’t to call the 
money hers, you know.” 

“Oh, I think that was right,” Marie 
exclaimed. She gave Mabel a little 
squeeze. “I’m so glad,” she said in a 
low tone. “You’re a dear, just a dear, 
Mabel, and I’ll never get mad with you 
and treat you so again. Truly, I wanted 
to be friends. I have missed you so 
much, all this time.” 

It was not so easy for Ethel to give in, 
but, finally, she, too, showed her good 
will by opening a box of caramels she 
was carrying. She offered them to Mabel 
and Harold. “I know they are good,” 
she said, “ for my aunt made them. Take 
a whole lot, Mabel.” And she gave her 
a generous supply. 

However, glad as Mabel was that all 


86 


Mabel's Mishap 

was smooth sailing again, she did not 
feel quite happy with the girls, and so 
she and Harold wandered off to seek out 
their own amusements. After they had 
eaten all the ice-cream and cake of which 
they were capable, and had bought more 
candy and had had more lemonade 
than was good for them, they found a 
little comer on one of the piazzas, and 
here they decided to settle down, for 
awhile, and watch the people, who were 
now beginning to gather rapidly. 

“ I’m awfully tired,” said Mabel. “I 
just feel as if my feet didn’t belong to 
me. Harold, I was just thinking that 
your papa will perhaps know some of the 
Cuban orphans, if any of his friends get 
killed.” 

Harold’s face took on a serious look 

> 

as it always did when his father was 
mentioned. “ I wish I knew about 


Mabel's Mishap 87 

father,” he said, after a pause, “ I haven’t 
heard for two weeks, and neither has 
Drake.” 

“Oh,” Mabel wished that she had not 
said anything about Captain Evans’ 
friends and their orphans. 

“You see,” Harold went on, “ the last 
time we did hear he was still at camp, 
but he expected to be ordered to Cuba at 
any time, and I suppose he may be on 
his way there. Of course, I want him to 
be as brave as the others, but I get scared 
sometimes, for fear he will be killed.” 

“ Oh, then would you be a Cuban 
orphan?” Mabel asked, in an awe- 
stricken tone. 

“Why, not exactly. I don’t know 
whether it means those who fight in 
Cuba, or those who are Cuban people ; it 
might be either way. Don’t let’s talk 
about it any more. Aren’t there a lot of 


88 Mabel's Mishap 

people here now ? 1 t’ s not been so crowded 
since we came.” 

Just then two gentlemen sauntered up 
and stood looking at the gay scene before 
them. One was Marie’s father, Mabel 
knew. 

“ There’s not much chance of our hav- 
ing an occasion like this another year,” 
Mr. Lewis remarked: “The war won’t 
last long.” 

Mabel nudged her companion, and they 
listened with all their ears. 

“ Too bad, though, the way our fellows 
have had to be sacrificed at camp,” 
returned Mr. Lewis’ friend. “ Every 
day I hear of some one from here having 
succumbed to typhoid fever, and the 
warm weather will not improve the con- 
ditions, I am afraid. By the way, you 
knew Captain Evans. I learned at the 
club on my way uptown, that he was 


Mabel's Mishap 89 

gone. Poor fellow, as nice a man as I 
ever knew. Died of typhoid fever.” 

Harold clutched Mabel’s arm and 
turned very pale. “ Did you hear ? ” he 
whispered. 

Mabel nodded ; she understood. “ Per- 
haps there is some mistake,” she whis- 
pered, in return. “Wait, I want to ask 
something.” 

She went up to Mr. Lewis, who looked 
down at her kindly. “ If you please, Mr. 
Lewis,” she said, “That Captain Evans 
you know, that you were just talking 
about, did he have any little boy ? ” 

Mr. Lewis glanced inquiringly at his 
friend, who nodded. “Yes, I think so,” 
he made answer. 

“ And is his name Harold? ” Mabel’s 
eyes were getting very moist, and she 
gave a quick little gasp. 

The gentleman seemed to be trying to 


90 


Mabel's Mishap 

remember. “Why, let me see; yes, I 
am pretty sure he has. I think I’ve heard 
him call his boy Harry. Yes, that’s it ; 
Harry.” 

Mabel glanced around, but only caught 
sight of Harold’s retreating figure. She 
ran quickly after him ; and, taking hold 
of his hand, she held it tightly. “We’ll 
go home and tell mamma,” she whispered. 

Harold bit his lip, and tried to keep 
back the tears, but hurried on. 

They were not long in reaching home, 
and then Harold broke away from Mabel, 
and she saw him disappear into his 
room. 

Her sympathetic little heart was too 
full for speech as she burst into Mrs. 
Ford’s room and buried her face in her 
mother’s lap. 

“Why, my little girl,” exclaimed Mrs. 
Ford; “did the girls treat you badly, 


Mabel's Mishap 91 

after all ? I am so sorry ; I hoped it 
would be all right, and that you would 
have no more trouble.” 

“It isn’t the girls,” Mabel sobbed; 
“they were lovely ; it’s Harold.” 

“ Why, dear me, how has he hurt your 
feelings ; you have been getting along so 
beautifully together ? What has he 
done ? ” 

“He hasn’t done anything,” Mabel 
said, between her sobs ; “it’s his father.” 

“ His father ! Has he come back? ” 

No answer, but a shake of the brown 
locks. 

“ Oh, I see ; he has sent for Harold. 
Well, dear ; we knew that would have to 
be sometime. Don’t cry about it ; but 
try to make Harold happy while he is 
here.” 

“It isn’t that,” Mabel found voice to 
say. 


92 


Mabel's Mishap 

“ Then, what is it — what has his father 
done?” 

“He’s died, and Harold is a Cuban 
orphan,” Mabel replied, with a fresh 
burst of tears. 

“ My dear, are you sure ? Come, tell 
me about it ; I don’t understand. We 
have not heard a word of it. Look up 
and tell me, child.” 

Mabel managed to convey her news, 
though in a somewhat disj ointed manner. 

Mrs. Ford looked grave, and went to 
Harold’s door; but, receiving no answer to 
her gentle knock, she went in, and saw that 
the little fellow had flung himself across 
the bed, and was crying convulsively. 
He raised his head as Mrs. Ford entered, 
and came to the arms she held out to 
him. 

She gathered him closely to her. “Don’t 
give up hope, dear child,” she said. “ I 


Mabel's Mishap 93 

think there may be a mistake ; and, under 
any circumstances, you know we love 
you, and are glad to keep you with us.” 

Mabel had crept in softly. “Oh, 
mamma, always ? ” 

“ Perhaps.” 

“ Oh, do say always,” she begged ; 
“ and let Harold be my brother ; then 
I’ll not be the middle one any more, and 
I’ll try — oh, Harold ! I will try to be as 
much like a boy as I can, and as mamma 
will let me. I’ll play anything you like 
to have me. I’ll climb trees and all; 
and I’ll even try not to be afraid of 
cows.” 

Mrs. Ford could but smile; but she 
added more comforting words till Harold 
at last lifted his head and said : “Where 
is Don ? I want Don.” And Mabel, de- 
lighted to be able to do something, flew 
to bring the dear dog, and with Don 


94 Mabel's Mishap 

hugged up close to him Harold, after a 
while, fell asleep. 

It was warm, mild May weather, and 
Mabel, too excited to sleep, crept to the 
window to watch for her father that night, 
for she felt that he would, perhaps, be 
able to decide upon the truth of the report 
they had heard, and besides, her mother 
had said, that if it were not too late, he 
would go down to the club, and gather 
particulars. But it was very late ; a meet- 
ing of some kind had kept him at the 
university, and Mabel grew very weary, 
before she saw his familiar form coming 
in at the gate. 

She crept softly down stairs, and 
entered her mother’s room in time to hear 
Mr. Ford say, as he looked at his watch: 
“I am afraid it is too late to-night to do 
anything, but I will inquire into the 
matter the very first thing in the 


Mabel's Mishap 95 

morning. Poor little fellow. I hope he 
will sleep soundly. His father was all in 
all to him.” 

“Don’t say was,’’ said Mrs. Ford, “for I 
do not quite believe the report.” 

Mr. Ford shook his head. “ I wouldn’t 
be too sanguine,” he returned. “You 
say Harold told you his father generally 
called him Harry ? ” 

“Yes, that is the part which makes it 
seem as if there were no mistake.” 

“ And can’t Harold stay here always ?” 
Mabel asked, as her father lifted her to 
his knee. 

“ That will be as his aunt says. We 
have no right to decide upon that. You 
will still have to be our boy, I think,” he 
said, smiling, for it had always been a 
joke between Mabel and her father, that 
of her being the boy of the family, and 
Mabel liked to be called “ Phil,” for she 


96 Mabel's Mishap 

always insisted that she ought to have 
had her father’s name. 

“ But what are you doing up this time 
of night?” Mr. Ford asked. “You should 
have been in bed and asleep hours ago.” 

Mabel gave him a mighty hug, and 
crept up stairs again, feeling very sorry 
for Harold, and wishing that she could 
do something to comfort him. 

The re-instatement in the favor of her 
friends seemed a small thing, compared 
to this last matter of interest, and after 
she had cuddled down again by the side 
of her sister Alice, she got up and went 
to the door leading to Harold’s room, to 
whisper to him, through the key hole, 
“ Good-night, Harold, I hope you will 
sleep well, and I’ll stay awake all night 
if you think you will feel lonely.” 

But Harold did not hear her, for he 
had cried himself to sleep long before, 


97 


MabePs Mishap 

and, though Mabel’s promise to stay 
awake was made in all good faith, it was 
not ten minutes later that she was soundly 
sleeping too, little dreaming that she 
would be the first one to bring comfort to 
the boy’s sorrowful heart. 


CHAPTER VII. 


ORN out with his grief, Harold slept 
Y Y rather late the next morning, and 
Mrs. Ford would not have him disturbed. 
Since it was Saturday, Mabel did not 
have to go to school, and she amused her- 
self as best she could in the garden. She 
wished that Harold would come down, 
but she concluded that, until he did, she 
would occupy herself by playing mar- 
bles. The fact that they hurt her knuck- 
les did not deter her from making up her 
mind to keep on till she could do as well 
as Harold. 

She was so absorbed in this employ- 
ment that she did not hear the gate open, 
nor see who had entered, till she heard 
some one close beside her, say : “ That’s a 

98 



66 


5 J 


SHE OCCUPIED HERSELF WITH TRYING TO PLAY MARBLES 



Mabel's Mishap 99 

pretty good shot for a little girl,” and 
looking up, she saw a gentleman whose 
face looked rather familiar. 

She jumped to her feet and stood gaz- 
ing at him, her recollection who it was 
gradually returning, and then she cried 
out: “Why, you weren’t alive yester- 
day.” 

Captain Evans, for it was he, threw 
back his head and laughed heartily in 
such a very alive way that Mabel could 
not doubt for a moment that he was flesh ^ 
and blood. “I feel very much alive 
to-day,” he assured her. “ Are you Miss 
Ford ? ” he asked. 

“No,” Mabel returned, “I’m only the 
middle one, and I’ll not be anything else, 
till Alice is married.” 

Captain Evans laughed again. Mabel 
thought he seemed a very jolly person. 

“You’re really Harold’s father,” she 


Lof C< 


ioo Mabel's Mishap 

said. “ Oh, do hurry in and see him, for 
he thought he didn’t have a father any 
more, and he was so miserable.” 

Captain Evans instantly became grave. 

“ Did he really believe that? My poor 
little boy,” and he hurried up the walk. 

Mabel, flying ahead of him, ran up the 
steps crying joyfully, “Harold! Harold! 
Quick!” And she almost fell over him 
as he appeared at the head of the stairs. 

u He is alive ! He is ! He is !” she 
cried. “ Come down.” 

But Harold needed no second bidding, 
for he had caught sight of a beloved 
figure already mounting the stairs, and, 
with one shout of joy, he threw himself 
into his father’s arms, and was fairly 
lifted off his feet in the energy of the 
greeting that his father gave him. 

It was all easily enough explained, 
when one realizes that Evans is not a 


IOI 


Mabel's Mishap 

very uncommon name, and had there 
been time to make a few more inquiries, 
the fact would have been brought to light 
that the Captain Evans who died at camp 
was another man, whose son Harry was a 
a boy of fifteen, with several sisters and 
brothers. 

Harold and Mabel felt very sorry for 
these other Evanses, even while they 
were so happy over the turn affairs had 
taken. 

“ Your aunt is still in no state of health 
to take charge of a restless little boy,” 
Captain Evans told his son, “and so I 
thought I must get leave to come on for a 
few days, and look after my son, for we 
have imposed long enough upon the 
kindness of these good friends.” 

Harold’s face fell. “And where am I 
going ? ” he asked. 

“I don’t know just yet, but I am cor- 


102 MabePs Mishap 

responding with some one in the country, 
and I hope to make arrangements to send 
yon to a farm for the summer. You 
would like that, wouldn’t you?” 

“Yes,” replied Harold, “if Mabel 
could go, too.” 

Mabel, listening, took hold of Captain 
Evans’ fingers and looked into his face 
earnestly. “ Would it be very far away ? ” 
she asked. 

“ No, only up here in Pennsylvania, a 
little way.” 

“Won’t you please to tell mamma 
about it ? ” 

“ Certainly, I shall be glad to,” re- 
turned the captain. 

And the outcome was that, not only 
was the farm found to be the place for 
Harold, but for the Ford family, too ; 
with the exception of Mr. Ford, who was 
going abroad for the summer. 


Mabel's Mishap 103 

“ It is just the spot for us,” Mrs. Ford 
declared ; “ a place where I can turn the 
children loose, and know that they are 
safe.” 

Mabel turned a beaming face toward 
Harold. “Do you hear that?” she ex- 
claimed. “We'll be turned loose, and I 
can go fishing, and I can climb trees and 
fences, and play all sorts of boy plays, 
without having the girls think I am a 
tom-boy. Oh, won’t it be fun ? And we 
will be together all summer, and in the 
fall — ” she looked at Captain Evans. 

“ Oh, that’s too far to think about 
now,” he answered, “but if the war is 
over, and if I am spared, I shall be able 
to make my plans more readily than I 
can now.” 

“ I hope the people will be nice and 
kind on the farm and will let me have 
Don,” said Harold. 


104 Mabel's Mishap 

“ That is the only difficulty,” his father 
told him. “I’m afraid yon cannot take 
Don with yon, but Drake has promised 
to take charge of him, and if all goes 
well you can have him again when yon 
get back. It is too bad, I know,” he con- 
tinued, seeing how disappointed Harold 
looked, “ but you would have had to leave 
him anyhow, if you had gone to your 
aunt’s, for she would not have received 
the dog, I know.” 

“ Why can’t I take Don to the farm ? ” 
inquired Harold, still hoping for consent. 

“Because Mrs. Knight doesn’t allow 
dogs on the place. She has a favorite 
cat, and, at first, was hardly willing to 
take a boy. For some reason she doesn’t 
approve of boys or dogs, but Mrs. Ford 
seems to have overcome her objections.” 

“Mrs. Knight!” Mabel exclaimed. 
“Oh, mamma, is it our Mrs. Knight? 


Mabel's Mishap 105 

Deborah Knight? She was going to 
move into the country ; I remember. 
Has she gone ? Is it to her house we are 
going ? I do hope it is.” 

“Yes, it is your Deborah Knight,” her 
mother told her. “I was going to keep 
it as a little surprise for you, but it 
doesn’t matter. As soon as she is settled 
on her farm, she is to let us know. When 
I saw her, and told her who I was, she 
immediately remembered you and Har- 
old, and consented at once to take ns all 
into her home. She has a large house, 
and thinks she will be rather lonely 
there, and seemed really pleased at the 
idea of having 1 those two kind and ten- 
der children,’ as she calls you.” 

“ Is she going to be a farmer herself? 
How can she, when she is lame ? ” Mabel 
.asked. 

Mrs. Ford smiled. “ No, she has a man 


106 Mabel's Mishap 

and his wife who attend to the farm for 
her. They live in a little house on the 
place. Mrs. Knight has changed a good 
many of her plans in order to accommo- 
date us, and I hope you children will give 
her no trouble.” 

Of course the children protested that 
they would not ; and, indeed, they were 
quite as reasonably good as one could 
expect, and if they did, once in a while, 
get into mischief, Mrs. Knight excused 
it because of the unfailing respect they 
showed to Bobby. This important mem- 
ber of the household seemed to enjoy 
country life after he had once become 
used to the change of residence, and 
rested secure from his natural enemies — 
boys and dogs. 

Like the grasshoppor, the children 
played through the summer days. The 
fact that Marie Lewis had gone to the 


Mabel's Mishap 107 

White Mountains, and Ethel Morris was 
at Bar Harbor, did not, in the least, mat- 
ter to Mabel, who would not have ex- 
changed Mrs. Knight’s grove and garden 
and barn for all the watering places in 
the world, and who wanted no better com- 
panion than Harold. 

In the midst of summer came the news 
of peace, and, later on, all Mrs. Knight’s 
guests went back to town to see the 
parades during the week of the Peace Jubi- 
lee celebration. But this did not take 
place before Mabel and Harold had a 
little jubilee of their own, consequent 
upon the news that Captain Evans, at 
Mrs. Ford’s request, would allow Harold 
to remain with the Fords for a year, at 
least, and longer if his father were still 
on active duty. 

And, will you believe it ? Harold, 
dressed in uniform, marched with his 


108 MabePs Mishap 

father’s regiment the day of the military 
procession. To be sure, he did not go 
all the way, but Mabel, up on one of the 
stands, felt her heart swell with pride as 
the regiment swung around the corner of 
the Public Buildings, and she saw her 
little companion bravely trying to keep 
step with the soldiers. And when 
the crowd cheered and cheered, she 
thought it must be all for Harold, and 
she stood up and waved her handkerchief 
till her arm was tired. 

Harold saw her, and, after the troops 
had passed in review, his father sent him 
to join his friends, and there they sat 
and looked at the brave array of infantry, 
cavalry, artillery and marines. 

“When I am grown, I am going to be 
a soldier,” Harold declared, all enthu- 
siasm. 

Mabel looked sober. That was some- 


Mabel's Mishap 109 

thing a girl couldn’t be, although she 
thought it would be fine to march by 
Harold’s side in such a grand procession. 

But that evening, when the Captain 
told stories of suffering and distress, or 
long marches and weary tramps through 
rain and sleet, or under a scorching sun, 
or the horrors of a battle, Mabel con- 
cluded that, after all, it was rather com- 
forting to know that such things could 
not be expected to come into her life, and 
she felt very sorry for Harold, who, how- 
ever, grew only more excited as the 
dangers were made more plain. 

“ But the only heroes are not the men 
like Dewey and Hobson, and Schley and 
Sampson,” Captain Evans said, at last. 
“I’ve seen the greatest courage, though 
of another kind, exhibited in quiet homes 
and by those of whom the world never 
hears. A small duty, which has no blare 


no Mabel's Mishap 

of trumpets nor roll of drums to encour- 
age one on to perform, sometimes requires 
more real heroism than a charge in 
battle.” 

Mabel knew that. She knew that 
everybody must fight something, and that 
she, too, could be a soldier, in a quiet 
way. That to become weary and to deny 
oneself, to face danger and temptation, 
was what was expected of those who had 
enlisted under the banner of the great 
Captain. 

So, she nodded her head gravely, and 
said, “Yes, I know.” 

Harold’s face showed his appreciation, 
and as if with one voice they broke out 
into the martial hymn : “ Onward, Chris- 
tian Soldiers.” 

They sang it all through, and then 
quiet fell upon the group. From a dis- 
tance came the roll of drums. A return- 


Ill 


Mabel's Mishap 

ing regiment going to its armory. Then 
all was still again, except for the voice of 
a cheery little cricket shrilling out its 
peaceful song in some quiet corner of 
the garden. Mabel snuggled up close 
to her mother. Don rested his head lov- 
ingly on his little master’s knee. Con- 
tent filled the hearts of all, for this even- 
ing. The morrow would see Mabel at 
school, to battle with more than books; 
would see Harold, too, fighting his way 
through his first latin lessons. 

The year had taught them many 
things, but most of all, it had taught 
them the value of truth and honor and 
loving forbearance. 








NOV 22 190U 





























